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Osso buco is a dish that has been popping up on my radar for a while now and it always looks so good. Even just the description of it sounds great; "Veal shanks braised in a white wine and tomato sauce." Braising is one of my favorite ways of cooking meat as it always turns out perfectly falling apart tender and full of flavour. The ossobuco veal shank is cut such that the marrow of the bone is exposed and it starts to melt into the pot as the veal braises infusing the dish with even more flavour. Osso bucco is commonly served with a gremolata topping that consists of chopped up garlic, parsley and lemon zest. The gremolata topping sounded so good that I could not pass on it. Risotto alla milanese or risotto flavoured with saffron is also commonly served with osso buco and I thought that it would be a perfect bed to soak up all of the excess sauce.

The osso buco takes a bit of time to make for the braising but otherwise it is pretty simple. While the meat is braising you have plenty of time to make the risotto and the gremolata at a relaxed pace. The osso buco with risotto alla milanese and gremolata was great! The meat was so tender and the sauce was absolutely packed with flavour. The tasty sauce went really well with the creamy risotto which quickly soaked up its flavours. The gremolata added a really nice touch of freshness to the meal. (I wonder what other dishes I can use a gremolata with?) I made enough for leftovers and now I will get to enjoy this tasty meal all week.

Directions:
1. Season the veal with salt and pepper and dredge in the flour shaking off any excess.
2. Cook the pancetta in a large oven proof pan and set aside reserving the grease in the pan.
3. Brown the veal on all sides on med/high heat one at a time and set aside.
4. Add some more oil to the pan if needed and saute the onions, carrots, celery, garlic and lemon zest on medium heat until tender, about 7-9 minutes.
5. Add the wine, stock and tomatoes and deglaze the pan and bring to a simmer.
6. Add the pancetta, veal, bay leaves, thyme and rosemary and bring to a simmer.
7. Cover and transfer to a preheated 350F oven and cook until the veal is fall off the bone tender, about 1 to 2.5 hours, turning the veal over in the middle. (Check the liquid every once in a while and top it off with some more beef broth if it falls to half way up the veal.)

Kevin, this use to be one of our favorite dishes. Veal is just not available in our area of Oregon. A tip for others who have the same problem - use turkey drumsticks (whacked to resemble veal shanks) and carry on as usual. IMO - the gremolata is what makes this dish special.

This is quite possibly one of my dad's favorite dishes ever. It's nice to know that a real person can make it (as opposed to a trained restaurant chef)...I've always been so daunted by the task. You've given me inspiration to make this for him...perhaps as a birthday dinner.

I've never had veal before...but I like the idea of braising, so the meat is so tender.

Question for you...I made flank steak over the weekend which even though it was cooked medium rare was totally tough.. Do you have a recipe...or should I have put a tenderizer on it, or marinated it?? Just curious if you knew.

Jennifer: I do not use flank steak all that often but I do use it for fajitas. I find that the combination and marinating it (with some lime juice among other things) and cutting it thinly against the grain works well.

Josh: I like the sound of a lamb shank version. The cook time should be approximately the same but rather than the time, what you are looking for is for the meat to be so tender that it easily pulls off the bone. Enjoy!

This appears to be a simple brown braised approach. I reccomend withholding the lemon zest until just prior to serving. Orange zest will also work. After browning, braise slowly in a 300 F oven in an enameled Dutch oven with the lid on. The idea is to get the internal temp in the 170- 190 F range to break down the collagen, but if you push it at a higher temp the meat will get dry.

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About Me

I came to realize that my meals were boring and that I had been eating the same few dishes over and over again for years. It was time for a change! I now spend my free time searching for, creating and trying tasty new recipes in my closet sized kitchen.